Reviews - The School for Good Mothers

9.67k reviews for:

The School for Good Mothers

Jessamine Chan

3.7 AVERAGE

meg_likes_to_read's review against another edition

3.75

dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Loveable characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

ladyinread_bbg's review against another edition

4.0

dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Content Warnings

rileymhr2001's review against another edition

4.0

this book was so interesting. i thought the book was non-fiction, or semi-autobiographical, to be quite honest, up until i realized that the children were filled with blue liquid. i get the point - the martyrdom of motherhood. and it’s quite depressing. a major theme of the book is the mother’s depression, of course. and i can see why that would make her wander off from her baby in the first place. to not care and not foresee any of the consequences. it’s like to you can’t see any pain around you or any of the pain that you cause others because all you can feel is your pain. you’re blinded by it. and in the moment, you just want to feel better. nothing else matters. so i can see that, i see that her friends and family seem to know that she has suicidal tendencies. and maybe that dictates a large part of her identity, or it’s just the best coping skill that she has. the biggest, most soothing, most powerful. a sedative. i don’t really know what all of it means, but yet again: another child who feels that she was not loved by her parents, and the dismal life that she finds herself in. i don’t think it has to be this way. four stars because it really is unique. i enjoyed it.

aljacoby88's review against another edition

4.0

This book was wild. The premise is frightening as a woman and a mother. It’s heartbreaking and interesting the whole way through and kept me hooked. Parts of it were strange but overall this was a great read!

bmk215's review against another edition

4.0

Holy!! Such a hard read. Especially when you’re a mother … it’s very hard for me to comment on this in detail but it was so heartbreaking.
I nicked it one star, because the middle felt a bit monotonous and repetitive, but I still recommend it to anyone strong enough to read a dystopian novel about state trying to control mothers (and fathers).

lauragracel's review against another edition

3.75

dark emotional sad medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Content Warnings

sparrolina's review against another edition

4.0

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Content Warnings

amandajean67's review against another edition

DID NOT FINISH: 16%

I didn’t choose the book- it was a book club read. I think the main reason for my dnf was the style and tone. It was very crass and I just knew it wasn’t worth my time.

istar_woman's review against another edition

4.0

Extra star for it inspiring great book club conversation even though most members hated it.

brgossard's review against another edition

3.0

challenging dark sad medium-paced

Loveable characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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